3 Years After the Beirut Blast: The Fight for Justice Prevails

11-08-2023

Perla Khaled

Middle East and Human Rights Researcher 

Global Human Rights Defence

Three years after one of the largest non-nuclear explosions in history shook Beirut, hundreds of demonstrators took to the streets in solidarity with the victims’ relatives to demand long-overdue justice and accountability. [1]

Carrying pictures of the victims, several protestors dressed in black marched toward the port and shouted slogans including “We will not forget.” [2] Amidst the crowd, some raised a Lebanese flag covered in red paint, a symbolic representation of bloodshed. Others held a large flag bearing a written commitment to the pursuit of truth and justice. [3]

On August 4, 2020, the Beirut port explosion took the lives of more than 210 people, injured over 7,000, displaced more than 300,000 individuals, and destroyed half of the capital. [4] According to primary investigations, the explosion was caused by 2,750 tons of ammonium nitrate that had been confiscated and kept in a port facility since 2014. [5] To this day, no individual has been charged in relation to the incident, and progress in the investigation has remained nearly stagnant, as it has been persistently hindered by blatant political and legal interference and constraints. 

Lead investigator Fadi Sawan accused former prime minister Hassan Diab and three former ministers of negligence in December 2020. Nevertheless, Sawan was removed from the case due to mounting political pressure. [6] Tarek Bitar, his successor, made unsuccessful pleas to lawmakers, urging them to remove the immunity of parliament members who had previously served as cabinet ministers. [7] Following a storm of lawsuits, primarily from politicians implicated in the investigation, Bitar suspended his investigation in December 2021. [8] The investigation was additionally hampered by the interior ministry’s refusal to carry out arrest warrants issued by Bitar. [9] While he remains steadfast in his refusal to step down, Bitar has been absent from Beirut’s Justice Palace for months.

Public Prosecutor Ghassan Oweidat, who was charged in the port investigation, issued a lawsuit and imposed a travel restriction on Judge Bitar when he sought to resume the probe in January 2023. [10] Oweidat further called for the release of all individuals who had been detained on suspicion of their involvement in the explosion. Since then, at least one defendant has left the country. [11] The Lebanese Judges Association and the Beirut Bar Association have both deemed Oweidat’s actions unlawful, albeit the investigation is yet to be picked back up. [12]

On August 3, more than 300 members from civil society and international organisations, including survivors and victims’ loved ones, reiterated their plea for the United Nations Human Rights Council to institute an independent fact-finding mission with the aim of identifying those accountable - a demand which Lebanese authorities have consistently rejected. [13]

“We are a people who blew up but did not die. We will ask for justice until our last breath because this is our country” said Paul Naggear, the father of 3-year-old Alexandra who was killed in the blast. [14]

The prevailing lack of accountability and the glaring absence of justice epitomise a deeply entrenched culture of impunity in Lebanon. Three years after the Beirut blast, the families of the victims remain resolute in their determination to never forget, and the fight for justice persists.

Sources and further reading:

[1] Al Jazeera, ‘Hundreds protest as Lebanon marks third anniversary of Beirut blast’ (04 August 2023) <https://www.aljazeera.com/gallery/2023/8/4/photos-hundreds-protest-as-lebanon-marks-third-anniversary-of-beirut-blast> accessed 11 August 2023.

[2] Ibid.

[3] Ibid.

[4] William Christou, The New Arab, ‘Survivors of Beirut port blast ‘determined to achieve justice’ 3 years on’ (04 August 2023) <https://www.newarab.com/news/beirut-port-blast-anniversary-survivors-decry-injustice> accessed 11 August 2023.

[5] CNN, ‘Protesters demand answers on third anniversary of Beirut port explosion’ (04 August 2023) <https://edition.cnn.com/2023/08/04/middleeast/beirut-explosion-third-anniversary-intl-hnk/index.html> accessed 11 August 2023.

[6] Al Jazeera, ‘Hundreds protest as Lebanon marks third anniversary of Beirut blast’ (04 August 2023) <https://www.aljazeera.com/gallery/2023/8/4/photos-hundreds-protest-as-lebanon-marks-third-anniversary-of-beirut-blast> accessed 11 August 2023.

[7] Ibid.

[8] Ibid.

[9] Ibid.

[10] Amnesty International ‘Lebanon: Unacceptable lack of justice, truth and reparation three years after Beirut blast’ (03 August 2023) <https://www.amnesty.org/en/latest/news/2023/08/lebanon-unacceptable-lack-of-justice-truth-and-reparation-three-years-after-beirut-blast/> accessed 11 August 2023.

[11] Ibid.

[12] Ibid.

[13] Ibid.

[14] William Christou, The New Arab, ‘Survivors of Beirut port blast ‘determined to achieve justice’ 3 years on’ (04 August 2023) <https://www.newarab.com/news/beirut-port-blast-anniversary-survivors-decry-injustice> accessed 11 August 2023.